# Pellet Stove Owners



## OldHillcrestGuy

Have any of you had a problem with Pennington Wood Pellets?   Bought some this week at Sams Club (a ton of them)  at $3.88 a bag, great price, I normally use the ones American Hardware sells (Hamer) and have never had a problem, bought these Penningtons and stove is cutting off now and have alot a ash build up, first couple of bags ran fine.    Completely cleaned everything yesterday inside the stove, pipes, fan blades everything it ran for 12 hours then cut off overnight, this morning stove was full of black ash,  have cleaned and just restarted with the Hamer pellets.  Just wondering if anyone else has had a problem with the Penningtons, maybe thats why they were so cheap.:shrug:


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## GWguy

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> Have any of you had a problem with Pennington Wood Pellets?   Bought some this week at Sams Club (a ton of them)  at $3.88 a bag, great price, I normally use the ones American Hardware sells (Hamer) and have never had a problem, bought these Penningtons and stove is cutting off now and have alot a ash build up, first couple of bags ran fine.    Completely cleaned everything yesterday inside the stove, pipes, fan blades everything it ran for 12 hours then cut off overnight, this morning stove was full of black ash,  have cleaned and just restarted with the Hamer pellets.  Just wondering if anyone else has had a problem with the Penningtons, maybe thats why they were so cheap.:shrug:



I had a bad problem last year with a batch I bought at WalMart.  There was probably 20% sawdust in each bag.  Clogged everything.  I had to resort to screening the pellets, each and every bag, before I could put it in the stove.  I complained, and got my money back, don't remember if Walmart or Pennington refunded.

This year, I have noticed there was a bit more sawdust than I would like, also from Pennington.   It's not causing the stove to shutdown, but I do need to clean it more often.


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## Vince

Won't use Pennington, too much dust in every bag.  Hammer or Lignetics.  Ace has them.  Don't know what the price has gone to yet.  Bought a ton about 3 months ago.  Will be ready for my second ton in January and that should get me through the rest of the winter.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

My first 2 or 3 bags of the Pennington's seemed to leave alot less ash then the Hamer's, also have used the Lignetic's thats what the store in Waldorf where I got my stove from sells, thought they had alot more ash then the Hamers had so Ive kind of stuck with them.  When I saw the price at Sams ($3.88) I bought 2 bags and tried them, and it appeared to be alot less ash then even the Hamer's thats why I went back and got a ton of them.
 I have a Breckwell 2000 model and my son has the same model, we split the ton and he is very pleased with what he has used so far about 4 bags, says stove is cleaner.
 Today I cleaned the pellet hopper out of the Penningtons, all the way to the augar and there was alot of sawdust, but thats the first time in quite awhile Ive done that so I dont know if the dust was from the Penningtons or a build up from the Hamers.
 While Im typing this Im looking at the stove and its running fine so far about 3 hours now, and the glass isnt clouding up too bad.  I did adjust the flue a bit from where it was set  yesterday.
 Just have to wait and see if it keeps running.:shrug:


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## clevalley

Either used HAmer or Lignetics up until this year... never had a problem or never had to clean them out.

My boss ran into some called "Country Boy" - OMG, these blow HAmer and Lignetics out of the water.  I bet I get 1/3 of the ash and little to no clinkers.

They are made from sawdust from a hardwood floor manufacture company in Kentucky.  I mean, they are unbelievable.  A ton cost about $240... damn, remember when they were $120 a ton (pre-paid) LOL!

I bought them in Gambrils, MD (just before Leo's RV's - the name of the place escapes me right now) and they even store them for you... I picked up the first ton in September and I am going to get the next one sometime this week.  They will hold them until March...


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## GWguy

clevalley said:


> Either used HAmer or Lignetics up until this year... never had a problem or never had to clean them out.
> 
> My boss ran into some called "Country Boy" - OMG, these blow HAmer and Lignetics out of the water.  I bet I get 1/3 of the ash and little to no clinkers.
> 
> They are made from sawdust from a hardwood floor manufacture company in Kentucky.  I mean, they are unbelievable.  A ton cost about $240... damn, remember when they were $120 a ton (pre-paid) LOL!
> 
> I bought them in Gambrils, MD (just before Leo's RV's - the name of the place escapes me right now) and they even store them for you... I picked up the first ton in September and I am going to get the next one sometime this week.  They will hold them until March...



Sounds like a good deal.  I searched for them via Google, didn't come up with anything.  Was hoping to find a source closer.


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## kom526

I use Hamer's and I'm plenty happy with the performance. Could it be a feed rate problem? It took me 1/2 the season last year to adjust the feed rate correctly. I can run my stove for 8-10 hours and get maybe a 1/2 cup of ash out of the firepot.


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## GWguy

kom526 said:


> I use Hamer's and I'm plenty happy with the performance. Could it be a feed rate problem? It took me 1/2 the season last year to adjust the feed rate correctly. I can run my stove for 8-10 hours and get maybe a 1/2 cup of ash out of the firepot.



I clean mine once a week, running all the time, and I get less than a cup of coal in the pot, maybe a cup and a half of powder ash that I have to vacuum out.


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## clevalley

*Country Boy Pellets*

Franklins Lawn and Garden - this is the only place I know that sells them.   I bought 2 tons and got the $240/ton rate...

I went and picked up the first ton in September and will go and get the next by the end of the year.

Country Boy Pellets


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## GWguy

clevalley said:


> Franklins Lawn and Garden - this is the only place I know that sells them.   I bought 2 tons and got the $240/ton rate...
> 
> I went and picked up the first ton in September and will go and get the next by the end of the year.
> 
> Country Boy Pellets



Thanx.  I went to the home site and found an email address.  Sent a note asking if they had a list of distributors / retailers down here.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

kom526 said:


> I use Hamer's and I'm plenty happy with the performance. Could it be a feed rate problem? It took me 1/2 the season last year to adjust the feed rate correctly. I can run my stove for 8-10 hours and get maybe a 1/2 cup of ash out of the firepot.



  Its not a feed problem, it might be a flue problem.   After my post yesterday the stove ran for 24 hours straight no problems.  This morning turned it off the do a quick cleaning, was burning Hamer's pellets since yesterday.  I use a paint brush to brush down the back wall and the logs and brush the ash into the ash bin under the firepot, about once a week I vaccum good.  Today after turning it back on after the cleaning it starts firing up and just as it is hot enough to go out of the startup cycle it cuts out.  I wait for it to shutdown and then I disconnect, the airflow hose from the backwall to the airflow switch and blow it out and start it backup, and it was stillling running when I left for work this afternoon about 45 minutes of running time.  
  Im avoiding calling for service, cause last year when I checked once at the store in Wadorf where I purchased it they wanted a arm and leg, think it was $90 for the first 30 minutes and I cant remember what they said after that.  They really have sort of a monopoly, since not too many places sell them.

 Fox5 had just a short thing on the news the other night about pellet stoves and how they are becoming popular, the guy was in Waldorf at American Hardware, I got my stove at the other place in Waldorf, they said that pellet stoves are out selling wood stoves 3 to 1.   

 When my stove is running it heats the whole house my oil furnace never comes on, I have a splitfoyer home 46x26.   It does a great job.


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## Vince

GWguy said:


> I clean mine once a week, running all the time, and I get less than a cup of coal in the pot, maybe a cup and a half of powder ash that I have to vacuum out.


Clean mine about once every 3 - 4 days.  Get about a 1/2 cup of coal in the pot and maybe a cup of powder.  This is running Hammer or Lignetics.


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## kom526

I got my stove from American Hardware. Luckily for them the product sells itself and they ARE knowledgeable about the product but they have have the organizational skills of a yard full of headless chickens. I didn't like the attitude I got from the folks @ Tri-County and I think the Quadra-Fire stoves are more versatile and user friendly than the stoves @ T-C.


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## The_Twisted_Ear

I'm having a weird problem.  I start my stove, it runs for a few minutes, shuts off completely for 10 seconds and then restarts itself.  It runs fine after that.  I've had my Kozi Stove (made in Canada) for 4 years.  I sent an e-mail to the manufacture and we have been exchanging e-mails, etc.  They offered to call me and help me diagnose the problem over the phone.  Wow - how many vendors offer to do that?  I'll let ya know what we find out.

Called up the manufacture and they worked with me for about 45 minutes.  It ended up being a lose connection.  Life it good!


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## OldHillcrestGuy

Stove has been running 50 hours straight (nonstop) no shutting down.

 Hope all is well, will have to stop it in the morning (Im on evening shift) to clean it and that seems where I have the problem with it starting backup
after a cleaning.:shrug:


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## GWguy

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> Stove has been running 50 hours straight (nonstop) no shutting down.
> 
> Hope all is well, will have to stop it in the morning (Im on evening shift) to clean it and that seems where I have the problem with it starting backup
> after a cleaning.:shrug:



Maybe you just had a chunk of dirt in front of the heater coil or something... that happens to me once in a while after cleaning.

Mine has been running non stop for 2 weeks.  I let it run out of pellets today so it will be cold when I get home.  Time clean it.


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## clevalley

*Local Distributor*



GWguy said:


> Thanx.  I went to the home site and found an email address.  Sent a note asking if they had a list of distributors / retailers down here.



Let me know what you find out.


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## GWguy

clevalley said:


> Let me know what you find out.



No reply as of yet.  If I hear anything, I'll post it up here.


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## GWguy

GWguy said:


> No reply as of yet.  If I hear anything, I'll post it up here.



They never did answer... 

Anyway, just came from McKays.  The have a brand called Lignetics, pallet price of $249.  Anyone ever try them?  Know anything about them? (the pellets, not McKays... )


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## Dye Tied

GWguy said:


> They never did answer...
> 
> Anyway, just came from McKays.  The have a brand called Lignetics, pallet price of $249.  Anyone ever try them?  Know anything about them? (the pellets, not McKays... )



I know of someone who uses those. Very little dust and great quality.


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## GWguy

Dye Tied said:


> I know of someone who uses those. Very little dust and great quality.



 Thanx!  I should have read back thru this post, Lignetics was mentioned more than once as being decent...  Their pallet price is the same as I was paying for Pennington at WallyMart, and I really don't like those, so I may just get a pallet load from McKays....


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## Dye Tied

GWguy said:


> Thanx!  I should have read back thru this post, Lignetics was mentioned more than once as being decent...  Their pallet price is the same as I was paying for Pennington at WallyMart, and I really don't like those, so I may just get a pallet load from McKays....



Let me know if you feel the same about their quality. They leave very little ash and burn slow and even.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

Dye Tied said:


> Let me know if you feel the same about their quality. They leave very little ash and burn slow and even.



 Ive burned the Lignetics before and in my case found them to have more ash then the Hamar's I get from American Hardware.   True Value also sells the Lignetics and sells the pallet for $249 also I believe.
 When I started this tread I was asking about Pennington's pellets and I have had my problems with them, first couple of bags seemed to burn fine so I went back to Sam's Club and bought a ton to split between myself and my son. ($190 a ton).   Then my problems started they began to jam in the augar area, so Ive gone back to my Hamar's and I now sometimes mix Hamars with the Pennington's in the pellet hopper and mix them up real good (sift through with my hands a mix them up good) and I havent had anymore problems.   My son isnt having problems with the Pennington's and says they are burning good with little ash, and we have the same pellet stove.


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## GWguy

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> Ive burned the Lignetics before and in my case found them to have more ash then the Hamar's I get from American Hardware.   True Value also sells the Lignetics and sells the pallet for $249 also I believe.
> When I started this tread I was asking about Pennington's pellets and I have had my problems with them, first couple of bags seemed to burn fine so I went back to Sam's Club and bought a ton to split between myself and my son. ($190 a ton).   Then my problems started they began to jam in the augar area, so Ive gone back to my Hamar's and I now sometimes mix Hamars with the Pennington's in the pellet hopper and mix them up real good (sift through with my hands a mix them up good) and I havent had anymore problems.   My son isnt having problems with the Pennington's and says they are burning good with little ash, and we have the same pellet stove.



I remember you mentioning the issues you had.  The Pennington is real hit-or-miss as far as how much sawdust is in the bag.  If it were me, I would have designed a sawdust trap at the bottom of the hopper to prevent the clogs in the auger.  Recently, I've had trouble with one bag burning with a high flame, then the next a low flame, sometimes low enough to make it turn off.  Annoying when you want it to run overnight....  I'm down to 10 bags of the Pennington, so I thought I'd try another brand.


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## clevalley

Country Boy - there is a distributor in Fredericksburg, VA - and in Gambrills, MD.  Nothing close around here...  they are manufactured from a hardwood flooring manufacturer.  Kiln dried processed hardwood is sawed into usable pieces, then routed/formed.  All of the sawing/milling equipments exhaust goes to the pelletizer machine - no bark, no dirt, all pure hardwood... they blow Hamer and Lignetics away...

GWguy - I am like 99.99999% sure it is Glover Enterprises - (540) 371-5200 - not much info on the site...

Hamer and Lignetics - a very good pellet from sawmills, but you will get some bark in it which accounts for the higher clinker and ash than Country Boy... now - I have burned about 3 tons each of these and they are REALLY good pellets!  I am amazed by the CB pellets right now.


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## GWguy

clevalley said:


> Country Boy - there is a distributor in Fredericksburg, VA - and in Gambrills, MD.  Nothing close around here...  they are manufactured from a hardwood flooring manufacturer.  Kiln dried processed hardwood is sawed into usable pieces, then routed/formed.  All of the sawing/milling equipments exhaust goes to the pelletizer machine - no bark, no dirt, all pure hardwood... they blow Hamer and Lignetics away...
> 
> GWguy - I am like 99.99999% sure it is Glover Enterprises - (540) 371-5200 - not much info on the site...
> 
> Hamer and Lignetics - a very good pellet from sawmills, but you will get some bark in it which accounts for the higher clinker and ash than Country Boy... now - I have burned about 3 tons each of these and they are REALLY good pellets!  I am amazed by the CB pellets right now.



That link shows them in Falmouth, VA.  I did drop an email to an address I found for CB, but never got an answer.  If I happen to be passing thru somewhere that has them, I'll stop and get a load.  Right now, the gas costs too much for a road trip to find them.

Thanx.


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## GWguy

If anyone cares, Sneads Hardware in Lusby carries both the lignetics and hamer, same price, $247.50 per ton, same as what I was paying for pennington.  I flipped a coin and got the hamer.


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## Vince

GWguy said:


> If anyone cares, Sneads Hardware in Lusby carries both the lignetics and hamer, same price, $247.50 per ton, same as what I was paying for pennington.  I flipped a coin and got the hamer.


 Yeah, I've got to order my second ton next week.  That will take me through the rest of the winter.


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## GWguy

Vince said:


> Yeah, I've got to order my second ton next week.  That will take me through the rest of the winter.



I've gone thru 1.5 tons already.  Big house and I rarely use the oil burner...  Been using alot this past week with the low temps.  Once it warms up into the 50s it won't be so bad.


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## clevalley

GWguy said:


> I've gone thru 1.5 tons already.  Big house and I rarely use the oil burner...  Been using alot this past week with the low temps.  Once it warms up into the 50s it won't be so bad.



Same here - I have used probably a bit 1.25 ton alread with a little less than a ton in reserve...  I was thinking of buying a third ton just-in-case...

Since March of '07 we have used 97 gallons of fuel oil (up until December 31st)


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## Vince

GWguy said:


> I've gone thru 1.5 tons already.  Big house and I rarely use the oil burner...  Been using alot this past week with the low temps.  Once it warms up into the 50s it won't be so bad.


Got a 4 bedroom, but it's a Cape Cod and the rooms are situated were the heat either goes back to the downstairs bedroom or upstairs.  I keep a humidifier blowing near the stairs so alot of the heat stays downstairs.  My heatpump may have kicked on once or twice.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

GWguy said:


> If anyone cares, Sneads Hardware in Lusby carries both the lignetics and hamer, same price, $247.50 per ton, same as what I was paying for pennington.  I flipped a coin and got the hamer.



 I hope you will be happy with the Hamar's since Ive been preaching about how much I like them.   I stopped in Mechcanicsville Supply today to see what brand they sell since I saw a sign out front saying pellets, they have Lignetics at $4.99 a bag and $239.00 a ton.
 In a couple of weeks Im going to go see George Strait in Baltimore, if I have time and if they are open a may stop by that place in Gambrills and by some bags of Country Boys, to check them out.
 Ive only had 4 delivries of oil in 2 whole years, first year I had my stove only had 2 deliveries and each were for 75 gallons, Beche even called me and said something seemed to be wrong with my consumption amounts, Im on automatic delvery and they said they prefer to deliver at least 150 gallons at a time, so they have adjusted (dont know how they do it) my delivery to every other time.
  I had a delivery back in October for about 90 gallons, but that was my first since like last Febuary.  I have a split level and the stove is in the family room downstairs across from where the steps go upstairs, I close off some rooms downstairs and the stove heats the whole upstairs to my comfort and the spouses, but I do have my mother-in-law with us now (lucky me) so I have set the thermstat(sp) just a bit higher then I have normally with the stove at about 63 just in case it gets bit chilly for her.
 Ive used just over a ton so far, and they were my leftovers from last year, Im now starting to use what I got this summer.   I have 3 tons in my shed right now, but half of those are my sons, so thats about 75 bags for me and that should hold up for this year. Even if  I should use a bag a day that gets me into mid March.


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## GWguy

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> I hope you will be happy with the Hamar's since Ive been preaching about how much I like them.



I'll let you know in about 2 weeks, after I burn up the Pennignton.

I do the same thing you do with closing doors.  If it gets below 35 outside, the upstairs gets cold and a very cold draft comes pouring down the stairs into the family room where I have the stove.  The stove will never shut off like that, so I close the door to the upstairs.  Family room gets to be a pleasant 80 with no trouble, usually set it to 70.  The rest of the house is very cool, but I'm the only one here, so no big deal.


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## GWguy

Ok, here's what I found using the Hamer pellets:

1st off, very little sawdust.  It is SO nice not having the stove choke up on sawdust.

The pellets themselves are bigger, and it seems to create a situation where the flame goes high, then low, then high.....and so on, and I can't tune it out.  The Pennington pellets are smaller, and seem to burn a bit more evenly, and I don't get the big swing in flame size.

The Hamer pellets coke up the pot far faster than the Pennington.  I could go almost 2 weeks on the Pennington before I had to clean the pot, now it's every 5 bags with the Hamer.  It gets so coked up that it won't relight if it turns off.

So, I'm happy that there isn't any sawdust to deal with, but not thrilled that I have to clean it way more often.  At this point, the stove runs 24/7, so cleaning happens at least twice a week.

Just my 2 cents....


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## OldHillcrestGuy

GWguy said:


> Ok, here's what I found using the Hamer pellets:
> 
> 1st off, very little sawdust.  It is SO nice not having the stove choke up on sawdust.
> 
> The pellets themselves are bigger, and it seems to create a situation where the flame goes high, then low, then high.....and so on, and I can't tune it out.  The Pennington pellets are smaller, and seem to burn a bit more evenly, and I don't get the big swing in flame size.
> 
> The Hamer pellets coke up the pot far faster than the Pennington.  I could go almost 2 weeks on the Pennington before I had to clean the pot, now it's every 5 bags with the Hamer.  It gets so coked up that it won't relight if it turns off.
> 
> So, I'm happy that there isn't any sawdust to deal with, but not thrilled that I have to clean it way more often.  At this point, the stove runs 24/7, so cleaning happens at least twice a week.
> 
> Just my 2 cents....



  Well GW,    sounds like you are maybe 50% pleased, lol

  I was the one pushing the Hamar's, my stove is running 24/7 at the current time, I usually clean mine every 2 days, but not always a really good cleaning, I sometimes use a big old paint brush to knock down the ash on the walls and clean off  the fake logs I have and empty the liitle burn pot and clean my glass, I just push it all into the ash bin then empty that about every month. So if I ran mine for 3 or 4 days before cleaning the burnpot would maybe get clogged with ash, but I dont wait that long for a cleaning.  About every third cleaning is when I vaccum and do a really good cleaning.

  I find my Hamar pellets to be smaller then the Pennington's, some of the Penn. were like a inch and a half long and I felt they were causing my stove to shutdown because the auger got jammed.

 Since I do have alot of Penningtons to get rid of, I have been mixing with the Hamars about 3/4 Harmar and a 1/4  Penn. in the bin.  I run my hands through the hopper to mix them up good and help break any of the long Penn pellets up.   Stove has been running great since I went off the Pennigtons 100%.

  Sure need it to be cranking today with the cold weather.


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## GWguy

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> Well GW,    sounds like you are maybe 50% pleased, lol
> 
> I was the one pushing the Hamar's, my stove is running 24/7 at the current time, I usually clean mine every 2 days, but not always a really good cleaning, I sometimes use a big old paint brush to knock down the ash on the walls and clean off  the fake logs I have and empty the liitle burn pot and clean my glass, I just push it all into the ash bin then empty that about every month. So if I ran mine for 3 or 4 days before cleaning the burnpot would maybe get clogged with ash, but I dont wait that long for a cleaning.  About every third cleaning is when I vaccum and do a really good cleaning.
> 
> I find my Hamar pellets to be smaller then the Pennington's, some of the Penn. were like a inch and a half long and I felt they were causing my stove to shutdown because the auger got jammed.
> 
> Since I do have alot of Penningtons to get rid of, I have been mixing with the Hamars about 3/4 Harmar and a 1/4  Penn. in the bin.  I run my hands through the hopper to mix them up good and help break any of the long Penn pellets up.   Stove has been running great since I went off the Pennigtons 100%.
> 
> Sure need it to be cranking today with the cold weather.



  Yeah, all the biatching aside, I am SO glad to have this stove.  It was 22 outside this morning, my bedroom on the 3rd floor was 60 and the family room where I have the stove was 70.  Can't beat that.  Even in this cold, I still haven't tuned on the oil burner.  Wonder if it still works ??? 

You weren't "pushing" them, you were just saying you had good luck with them.  I think next time I'll try the Legnetics, just for kicks and giggles.  Whatever works for each of us....


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## Vince

GWguy said:


> They never did answer...
> 
> Anyway, just came from McKays.  The have a brand called Lignetics, pallet price of $249.  Anyone ever try them?  Know anything about them? (the pellets, not McKays... )


Yep, went through a ton of them.  Lasted about half the winter.  Just got a load of Hammer for the rest of the winter.  Either brand is good.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

GWguy said:


> I think next time I'll try the Legnetics, just for kicks and giggles.  Whatever works for each of us....



  I stopped in a Southern States In Upper  Marlboro, they of course sell the Statesman brand, didnt buy any at the time but thought I'd buy 2 or 3 bags this week to just try them out.
 Im also going to Baltimore next Saturday to see George Strait and if Im early enough and have the time and they are open thought Id stop by that Garden Center that sells those pellets Country Boy or whatever they are called and buy a few bags for kicks and giggles.

 My stove is a cranking also its in the family room where the computer is Ive had to take off my sweatshirt,  my oil furnace has not kicked on at all today.


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## GWguy

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> I stopped in a Southern States In Upper  Marlboro, they of course sell the Statesman brand, didnt buy any at the time but thought I'd buy 2 or 3 bags this week to just try them out.
> Im also going to Baltimore next Saturday to see George Strait and if Im early enough and have the time and they are open thought Id stop by that Garden Center that sells those pellets Country Boy or whatever they are called and buy a few bags for kicks and giggles.
> 
> My stove is a cranking also its in the family room where the computer is Ive had to take off my sweatshirt,  my oil furnace has not kicked on at all today.



Let me know what you think of the Country Boy, if you do get some.  Haven't heard of the Statesman brand.  Anyone else on here ever use them?


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## OldHillcrestGuy

GWguy said:


> Let me know what you think of the Country Boy, if you do get some.  Haven't heard of the Statesman brand.  Anyone else on here ever use them?



 The salesman said they were good.   The Southern States in Upper Marlboro got bought out by R&D Cross of Brandywine, which is Southern States type store back in the boonies of Brandywine way off the beaten path, Ive been down in So PG and Charles and North. St Mary's for a very long time and didnt know they were there.
 Well they have opened a wood stove, pellet stove  showroom in Upper Marl. and I talked to the guy for awhile he showed me the Statesman pellets that was burning in one of the stoves, they seemed to be small maybe less  then half inch long but he said he hadnt gotten any compliants about them.:shrug:


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## clevalley

I have noticed that pellets (no matter what brand) will run longer or shorter based on the manufacturers run... I have had Hamer's long and short.  I really think it has to do with the handling... 

I am down to little under a ton right now, I do not think this is going to last me until the end of the year so I will get another ton about the middle of February.


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## BBlack

*Pennington (Nature's Heat) Wood Pellets*

_Issues have been brought up in this forum about the quality of Pennington Wood Pellets. Concerns have ranged from how well they burn, the amount of ash and clinkers they produce, the presence of long pellets (regulation is 1/2 to 1 1/2 inches long), and an excess of fines or dust in the bag. The fact that some of you have encountered problems with our pellets is very concerning to us and we would like to work with you to resolve them.

Some background - Pennington has five wood pellet plants in the East and Midwest of the US. The pellet mills in Missouri and Virginia have been in operation for many years and make an excellent product. In the last 12 months, three new pellet mills have been built to help alleviate the pellet shortages from previous years. We have experienced some quality problems from these plants as they were started up. Pennington Seed has high standards for all of their products, and we regularly test our wood pellets for ash, length, fines, and BTU. Despite these tests and our best efforts, it appears some sub-standard pellets from these new plants made it into the marketplace.

If you have recently purchased Pennington Wood Pellets and not satisfied with them, you can contact Customer Service at 1-800-658-0410 or email mauge@central.com. Please note the lot number on the bag (usually embossed near the top seal of the bag), where and when you bought them, and what the issues are with the product.

Below are some comments concerning other questions raised:

Pellet storage - When possible, store wood pellets inside, out of the weather. If kept dry pellets can be stored from season to season. If this is not possible and you must store outside, keep product off the ground to prevent moisture from wicking from below, and cover with a tarp to protect from rain, snow and sun.

Small holes in bags - The small holes along the top seal are added to assist bagging and palletizing of the product during the manufacturing process. These holes allow air to escape after sealing. In the absence of these holes, the trapped air would blow-out the seals when product is stacked on a pallet.

Brands - Bio Plus and Nature’s Heat are both manufactured by Pennington. Nature’s Heat is a new brand launched in 2007 and is meant to replace the older Bio-Plus brand.

Customer Service – Pennington Seed_


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## GWguy

BBlack said:


> _Issues have been brought up in this forum about the quality of Pennington Wood Pellets. Concerns have ranged from how well they burn, the amount of ash and clinkers they produce, the presence of long pellets (regulation is 1/2 to 1 1/2 inches long), and an excess of fines or dust in the bag. The fact that some of you have encountered problems with our pellets is very concerning to us and we would like to work with you to resolve them.
> 
> Some background - Pennington has five wood pellet plants in the East and Midwest of the US. The pellet mills in Missouri and Virginia have been in operation for many years and make an excellent product. In the last 12 months, three new pellet mills have been built to help alleviate the pellet shortages from previous years. We have experienced some quality problems from these plants as they were started up. Pennington Seed has high standards for all of their products, and we regularly test our wood pellets for ash, length, fines, and BTU. Despite these tests and our best efforts, it appears some sub-standard pellets from these new plants made it into the marketplace.
> 
> If you have recently purchased Pennington Wood Pellets and not satisfied with them, you can contact Customer Service at 1-800-658-0410 or email mauge@central.com. Please note the lot number on the bag (usually embossed near the top seal of the bag), where and when you bought them, and what the issues are with the product.
> 
> Below are some comments concerning other questions raised:
> 
> Pellet storage - When possible, store wood pellets inside, out of the weather. If kept dry pellets can be stored from season to season. If this is not possible and you must store outside, keep product off the ground to prevent moisture from wicking from below, and cover with a tarp to protect from rain, snow and sun.
> 
> Small holes in bags - The small holes along the top seal are added to assist bagging and palletizing of the product during the manufacturing process. These holes allow air to escape after sealing. In the absence of these holes, the trapped air would blow-out the seals when product is stacked on a pallet.
> 
> Brands - Bio Plus and Nature’s Heat are both manufactured by Pennington. Nature’s Heat is a new brand launched in 2007 and is meant to replace the older Bio-Plus brand.
> 
> Customer Service – Pennington Seed_



Thanx for posting here!

I had a real problem with Pennington pellets last year, to the point where your customer service refunded me the entire pallet price.  That impressed me.

I like the Pennington pellets, but last year, and again earlier this season, the pellets continue to had excessive amounts of sawdust, enough to choke the intake of my QuadraFire after just 2 or 3 bags.  I can run a pallet load of other brands and never have a sawdust problem.  If it makes any difference, all the pellets I purchased were from the local WalMart in California, MD.  I don't think I have any of the bags with run numbers, I'm pretty sure they have all been tossed by now.

Again, thanx for your comments and the Customer Service contact info.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

BBlack said:


> _Issues have been brought up in this forum about the quality of Pennington Wood Pellets. Concerns have ranged from how well they burn, the amount of ash and clinkers they produce, the presence of long pellets (regulation is 1/2 to 1 1/2 inches long), and an excess of fines or dust in the bag. The fact that some of you have encountered problems with our pellets is very concerning to us and we would like to work with you to resolve them.
> 
> Some background - Pennington has five wood pellet plants in the East and Midwest of the US. The pellet mills in Missouri and Virginia have been in operation for many years and make an excellent product. In the last 12 months, three new pellet mills have been built to help alleviate the pellet shortages from previous years. We have experienced some quality problems from these plants as they were started up. Pennington Seed has high standards for all of their products, and we regularly test our wood pellets for ash, length, fines, and BTU. Despite these tests and our best efforts, it appears some sub-standard pellets from these new plants made it into the marketplace.
> 
> If you have recently purchased Pennington Wood Pellets and not satisfied with them, you can contact Customer Service at 1-800-658-0410 or email mauge@central.com. Please note the lot number on the bag (usually embossed near the top seal of the bag), where and when you bought them, and what the issues are with the product.
> 
> Below are some comments concerning other questions raised:
> 
> Pellet storage - When possible, store wood pellets inside, out of the weather. If kept dry pellets can be stored from season to season. If this is not possible and you must store outside, keep product off the ground to prevent moisture from wicking from below, and cover with a tarp to protect from rain, snow and sun.
> 
> Small holes in bags - The small holes along the top seal are added to assist bagging and palletizing of the product during the manufacturing process. These holes allow air to escape after sealing. In the absence of these holes, the trapped air would blow-out the seals when product is stacked on a pallet.
> 
> Brands - Bio Plus and Nature’s Heat are both manufactured by Pennington. Nature’s Heat is a new brand launched in 2007 and is meant to replace the older Bio-Plus brand.
> 
> Customer Service – Pennington Seed_



 Yes Thanks for posting, as you may have noticed I have been the one who started these 2 threads about the pellet stoves.
 I have had a interesting year with my stove, in a earlier post I was having a problem with my stove cutting off with the Penningtons and after I switched back to the Hamers I have had no problems.
 It's funny just the other day I looked at my big pile of Penningtons stacked up and said what am I going to do with these. so I moved some down to the garage and will give them another try starting tonight.  I still have about 2/3 a ton so it wont be a problem getting alot number.


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## huntr1

BBlack said:


> _Issues have been brought up in this forum about the quality of Pennington Wood Pellets. Concerns have ranged from how well they burn, the amount of ash and clinkers they produce, the presence of long pellets (regulation is 1/2 to 1 1/2 inches long), and an excess of fines or dust in the bag. The fact that some of you have encountered problems with our pellets is very concerning to us and we would like to work with you to resolve them.
> 
> Some background - Pennington has five wood pellet plants in the East and Midwest of the US. The pellet mills in Missouri and Virginia have been in operation for many years and make an excellent product. In the last 12 months, three new pellet mills have been built to help alleviate the pellet shortages from previous years. We have experienced some quality problems from these plants as they were started up. Pennington Seed has high standards for all of their products, and we regularly test our wood pellets for ash, length, fines, and BTU. Despite these tests and our best efforts, it appears some sub-standard pellets from these new plants made it into the marketplace.
> 
> If you have recently purchased Pennington Wood Pellets and not satisfied with them, you can contact Customer Service at 1-800-658-0410 or email mauge@central.com. Please note the lot number on the bag (usually embossed near the top seal of the bag), where and when you bought them, and what the issues are with the product.
> 
> Below are some comments concerning other questions raised:
> 
> Pellet storage - When possible, store wood pellets inside, out of the weather. If kept dry pellets can be stored from season to season. If this is not possible and you must store outside, keep product off the ground to prevent moisture from wicking from below, and cover with a tarp to protect from rain, snow and sun.
> 
> Small holes in bags - The small holes along the top seal are added to assist bagging and palletizing of the product during the manufacturing process. These holes allow air to escape after sealing. In the absence of these holes, the trapped air would blow-out the seals when product is stacked on a pallet.
> 
> Brands - Bio Plus and Nature’s Heat are both manufactured by Pennington. Nature’s Heat is a new brand launched in 2007 and is meant to replace the older Bio-Plus brand.
> 
> Customer Service – Pennington Seed_


Now THAT's proactive Customer Service.


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## OldHillcrestGuy

huntr1 said:


> Now THAT's proactive Customer Service.



 Yes it is.   Just think how far our forum pages go and who looks at them.


 Maybe even our beloved Governor Martin O'Malley looks in here and sees how loved he is.


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## Young77

I went out and bought 5 bags of Country Boy pellets after reading the comments,and found them a lot dustier than Lignetics, but not as dusty as Greenway. Anyone else tried 'em since that posting?


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## OldHillcrestGuy

Young77 said:


> I went out and bought 5 bags of Country Boy pellets after reading the comments,and found them a lot dustier than Lignetics, but not as dusty as Greenway. Anyone else tried 'em since that posting?



 No I havent, but the funny thing I was not to happy with Penningtons at one time  but I burned them this past week and these have seemed to be burning a whole lot better then my Hamer's of late.
 Pennington actually emailed me and wants info on the not so nice pellets I had earlier this year,  I need to get that off to them with pellet sample and bag.


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## kom526

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> No I havent, but the funny thing I was not to happy with Penningtons at one time  but I burned them this past week and these have seemed to be burning a whole lot better then my Hamer's of late.
> Pennington actually emailed me and wants info on the not so nice pellets I had earlier this year,  I need to get that off to them with pellet sample and bag.



I've switched over to Lignetics due to the fact that I can get them down here cheaper than Hamer's in Waldorf. So far it seems that the Lignetics burn hotter and cleaner and like GW said, my pot isn't as coked up as it was with the Hamer's.


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## Young77

kom526 said:


> I've switched over to Lignetics due to the fact that I can get them down here cheaper than Hamer's in Waldorf. So far it seems that the Lignetics burn hotter and cleaner and like GW said, my pot isn't as coked up as it was with the Hamer's.


Where are you getting your Lignetics? Cheaper is good!


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## OldHillcrestGuy

Young77 said:


> Where are you getting your Lignetics in Waldorf? Cheaper is good!



 They have them at Tri County.  True Value in Charlotte Hall has them also, and proably the one in LaPlata also.


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## mrviper

*Lignetics & Pellet Stove Settings*

With regards to Lignetics Pellets, I actually bought a ton from American Hardware, they got this brand in while still waiting for delivery of Hamar's pellets which they normally supply. I found the pellets to have an ash rate double that of Hamar's, and all the cleaning I did this year compared to last year was evidence enough for me! But that will not stop me from buying Lignetics again, they burned evenly from bag 1 to bag 50! With regards to clinkering, I found no mater what brand you burn, if you figure out the optimal oxygen rate, you will get little to none.

Now this is only my 2nd year of pellet burning, and I am set to buy a new Quadra Fire to help my old Whitfield handle the load of the 720sq ft addition I just added on to my house. 

I was wondering now that some of you have used the Quadra Fire, is this the best buy on the market?

Also, has anyone hooked their stove into their air handler? I want to use the smaller Whitfield for the bedrooms, but getting the heat their is a bit of a problem, any suggestions?


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## kom526

OldHillcrestGuy said:


> They have them at Tri County.  True Value in Charlotte Hall has them also, and proably the one in LaPlata also.



Mechanicsville Building Supply.

The Lignetics I used this season had about the same amount of ash as Hamer's BUT they burned cleaner (no crud sticking to the sides of the firepot). which made for easier clean ups.


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